The bio-medical instruments for applying electric currents on human body are continuously developed and widely used, such as, the Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS), the Electronic Muscle Stimulator (EMS) . . . , etc. One essential component of the mentioned-above medical instruments is the electrode apparatus. The research and design of the electrode apparatus also influence the application range of the above-mentioned medical instruments deeply. By the development of material science, the wearable electrode apparatus for the above mentioned medical instruments are designed for widening the application range.
One of the prior arts of the wearable electrode apparatus is about knitting a dense net structure from the carbon fibers, in order to form an electrode for contacting the human body. However, because of the brittle material property of the carbon fibers, the wearable electrode made by the carbon fibers has the disadvantages such as short service life, lower wash-resistance, and limited design model. For example, the wearable electrode apparatus can not be designed as the socks-like model. The fitting level of the electrode made by the carbon fibers is lower, and also the effect of applying currents on human body is lower.
The other prior art of the wearable electrode apparatus is about coating the conductive material (such as the silver glue) over the macromolecular base, further forming the electrode. The related prior art of this type is disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,283. Comparing the two above-mentioned types, this type is washable, but the washing frequency is still limited. The wearable electrode apparatus formed by coating the conductive material can be designed in various kinds of models. However, the complex model for fitting human contour is still unavailable, such as the socks-like model. The wearing comfort of the wearable electrode apparatus formed by coating the conductive material still should be improved.
The manufacturing processes of the wearable electrode apparatus of two mentioned-above types are much complex, and the manufacture costs are much higher.